This invention relates to aircraft landing gear and particularly to extendable-retractable landing gear useful on cargo aircraft and providing a capability to selectively raise and lower the fuselage of the aircraft during ground operations.
There is a need for aircraft landing gear for cargo aircraft that will provide the capability to raise and lower a parked aircraft so as to position its cargo deck at a height convenient for cargo loading and unloading; and provide rigid, unsprung support for an aircraft during loading and unloading; and yet also provide adequate ground clearance and impact-absorbing support during landing and taxiing. It is an object of this invention to provide aircraft landing gear satisfying the just-mentioned need. It is a further object of the preferred embodiments of this invention to satisfy this need and also provide a landing gear that is steerable, has a structural load path common to all modes of operation, and is fully retractable during flight. Other objects of this invention will become apparent from the following detailed specification, the accompanying drawings and the appended claims.